The present invention relates to a device for controlling and regulating the amount of product which is poured into the moulds of chocolate or similar forming machines.
For the making of confectionary items machines are used (see German Pat. No. 972,397) which pour the product to be formed in suitable pits in the moulds moving on a conveyor belt passing below the pouring head of the forming machine.
It is well known that, legally, confectionery items, for example chocolate bars, must clearly indicate on the wrapping the composition of the product and its weight which shall never be lower than that which is quoted. For this reason, the forming machines of this kind are regulated to pour always a slightly higher amount of product into the pits, so that the final weight will be superior by some grams to the weight indicated on the wrapping, for example of a chocolate bar.
The forming machines therefore are provided with regulation means which are manually operated by the operator of the machine who, from time to time, removes, stopping the whole installation, one of the moulds already filled for controlling the weight, then reinserting the mould and, after regulating the quantity poured as required, restarting the machine. This to ensure the pouring of a higher or lower quantity of product into the moulds and to make sure that the final weight of each mould will be slightly in excess of that indicated on the wrapping.
This manual control does not only require labour and interruptions of the manufacturing process, but, because of the intermittent controls made, the excess weight to be poured into the moulds (required to avoid the dropping below the weight value given on the finished product) cannot be maintained within sufficiently narrow limits and the tolerances used are rather large.
When considering that the overweight may be about 10 to 20 grams for each mould and allowing for about 30 moulds a minute, there will be considerable differences at the end of a working day between the product poured and that declared.